Lisa Carrington wins Senior Māori Sportswoman of the Year

Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki's Lisa Carrington has been named Māori Sportswoman of the Year at the 2016 Māori Sports Awards ceremony at the Vodafone Events Centre in Manukau.

Finalists of this category include Rugby Sevens player Portia Woodman, squash player Joelle King, New Zealand cricket player Susie Bates and footballer Abbey Erceg.

She's no stranger to the Māori Sports Awards stage, she received the Hineahuone award in 2015 and in 2012. She was also the recipient of the inaugural Extraordinary Award for Best Female Sportsperson of the past 25 years.

Carrington made history after winning gold and bronze medals respectively in the K1 200m and K1 500m sprint races at the 2016 Rio Olympics. She also had the honour of being the flagbearer at the closing ceremony.

In August last year, she claimed her first gold medal for the K1 500m race at the recent World Championship series, after having won bronze and silver in past years.

In 2015 Carrington was named New Zealand's most successful most successful world championship canoe racer. Her wins took her overall World Championship gold medal haul to five, overtaking New Zealand legend Paul McDonald.

Carrington's name was etched into the history books in 2012 when she won her first gold medal at the Olympics in her speciality K1 200m race. Since then, she has continued to dominate on the water.